New Delhi: At least 920 people have been killed in Afghanistan in an earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale early Wednesday morning.
More than 600 were injured and numbers for both are expected to increase as more news comes in from remote areas, Reuters reported.
The earthquake struck about 44 kilometres from the southeastern city of Khost on the Pakistan border, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said. At a depth of 51 kilometres, the earthquake was the deadliest since 2002.
Maximum casualties, around 255, were in the eastern province of Paktika with 200 injured. Khost reported 25 deaths and 90 injuries.
The European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said tremors were felt over a range of some 500 km by about 119 million people in Pakistan, Afghanistan and other areas.
Pakistan media reported a mild-intensity earthquake in Islamabad, Lahore, Multan, Quetta and other parts of the country.
Haibatullah Akhundzada, the supreme leader of the ruling Taliban, has offered his condolences in a statement.
Interior ministry official Salahuddin Ayubi said the death toll was likely to rise “as some of the villages are in remote areas in the mountains and it will take some time to collect details”.
The Taliban, which took over the country last August, may find the rescue daunting as it weathers heavy international sanctions and an economic crisis.
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